Media Focus on Obesity May Backfire for Some Women

THURSDAY, Jan. 16, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- Feeling a little fat after the holidays? Beware. Reading a news story that seems to devalue people who are overweight might make you more likely to reach for snacks to soothe your anxiety.

Media stories that focus on topics such as the financial impact of obesity on society or the importance of better self-control for weight loss could spur weight gain among women, a small new study of college students contends.

When women who considered themselves overweight read news articles that appeared to put down overweight people, they seemed less able to control their eating than women who didn't feel they needed to shed pounds, the study found.

The study was designed to determine if people who felt stigmatized for being overweight were likely to eat more, due to resulting anxiety or frustration, said study author Brenda Major. She is a professor in the department of psychological and brain sciences at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

"We know that stress and feeling out of control or overwhelmed can make you less able to inhibit behaviors," Major said. "So we wondered if the same things that increase feelings of stigma actually cause you to eat more.

"People assume those who are obese are weak-willed, have no self-control or are lazy," she added.

Seeing media stories covering the so-called "obesity epidemic" and its potential impact on health care costs triggered Major's interest in doing this study, she said. "There's a frenzy about obesity in the media and there's a negative, moralistic tone to the coverage," she said.

Major's questions about the impact of stigmatization on weight gain are related to the work of other researchers. A previous study showed that when overweight women were put in a situation where they felt they would be devalued because of their weight, their blood pressure went up and a test showed they scored worse in measures of self-control.

Other research, published last July in the journal PLoS One, showed that discriminating against people because of their weight could increase the chances they become obese.

Thank you for submitting your response.

Good to Know is a new feature that allows members of the community to answer questions from WebMD experts, doctors, staff, and other community members. We're testing this new feature and we'd like your feedback.